Fereng Begger On Beach Promenade

[MeetJohnDoe]

It was almost like being back home in San Francisco last nite as I was out and about last nite walking the beach promenade from Royal Garden to the Pattaya Beer Garden. At the circle in the where there is the lighted Thai symbol that I assume has been erected for the King's birthday the was a rather motley looking middle-aged fereng squatting in ragged clothes on the ground and begging for money. I felt sorry for the young Thai fella who was competing for funds from passerbys by playing the guitar and singing for this supper. I felt llike asking the fereng if he knew of the new Thai regulations concerning the begging profession: i.e., they need a begging-permit, and in his case, a non-imm B visa and work permit.

Has anyone else seen this fella and how long has he been out there?

[stingray]

It was almost like being back home in San Francisco last nite as I was out and about last nite walking the beach promenade from Royal Garden to the Pattaya Beer Garden. At the circle in the where there is the lighted Thai symbol that I assume has been erected for the King's birthday the was a rather motley looking middle-aged fereng squatting in ragged clothes on the ground and begging for money. I felt sorry for the young Thai fella who was competing for funds from passerbys by playing the guitar and singing for this supper. I felt llike asking the fereng if he knew of the new Thai regulations concerning the begging profession: i.e., they need a begging-permit, and in his case, a non-imm B visa and work permit.

Has anyone else seen this fella and how long has he been out there?

Yes, this is tho lowest last kind of cheap charlies after the balloon chaisers

[Fore Man]

Very regrettable and it is sad to know that there are ex-pats in such a needy condition in Thailand. Being penniless in a foreign country must rank at the bottom of the barrel for dire circumstances. Let's hope he finds some better luck soon...

[FarangFatal]

Seen many. Whilst Making Merit at the Wat near to the Patong soccer (football) field (pitch) I've often seen falang waiting outside for those merit makers to give to the poor. Sad, I stopped to talk to one gent whom had just fallen on bad times due to a problem with a BG. She took him for everything and he needed money to call the UK and get some docs sent to LOS> Poor bastard, not the mentally ill druggie but a reasonable bloke. How do I know this, I offered my mobile and he made a number of call to the UK. I gave him food for a full breakfast and he made his way to eat and then the Western Union office on 2nd road! Poor bugger, the wanke_r wench got a look at his ATM pin and all.... He wasn't there in a few days when I returned...

[Theyreallrubbish]

Very regrettable and it is sad to know that there are ex-pats in such a needy condition in Thailand. Being penniless in a foreign country must rank at the bottom of the barrel for dire circumstances. Let's hope he finds some better luck soon...

While I have a certain amount of sympathy the vast majority of farang that I've seen fall this low its been primarily self-inflicted. Usually alcohol and bar girl addiction is the root cause.

[FarangFatal]

Pardon me but aren;t most of the Farang into a bit of the sauce and boom-a-maic units. How far depends on the sun, moon, current hang over status and how much vit v I've ingested... Show our brothers a lil luv, Luv!

[Sarge]

It was almost like being back home in San Francisco......

......the was a rather motley looking middle-aged fereng squatting in ragged clothes on the ground and begging for money.

......they need a begging-permit, and in his case, a non-imm B visa and work permit.

Has anyone else seen this fella and how long has he been out there?

This is something happening more often, and keeps reported in the press. I guess some of them are eccentric low-intellect, low-lifers in their home towns, and absconding to Pattaya, after having burnt bridges behind, doesn't really improve things. One can flee from problems but cannot one cannot run away from oneself. You'll take that wherever you go. There is an interesting article on an elderly American begging in Bangkok, at first look he seemed to be a reasonable guy but if you follow the interview the story doesn't add up, hard to say where bad luck ends and bad judgement starts. It makes an interesting read.

Edited December 5, 2008 by Buckwheat

[Tarqin]

Interesting article. Seems in this case the usual 'wife' ripped him off story.

Trying to get my head around being a falang beggar in Thailand. How low is that?

Know of quite a few desperate falangs in Pattaya. Burned their bridges back home. One stole his kids savings for a one way ticket.

They wash around as 'bar managers' etc etc and generally do not seem to be having a good time.

[garro]

I am a reformed drunk and previously begged on the streets. The OP has obviously never suffered from addiction nor has he witnessed the destruction it causes in the lives of many. The poster who claimed that it is all self-inflected is another fine specimen of humanity and he must have a fine mind if he thinks that drinking yourself to death is in any way fun. I find this whole thread to be a disgusting example of the type of people who visit Thailand. It is a great demonstration of how you don't need to be homeless to be a complete scumbag; nor do you have to be a drunk.

[cali4995]

I think he's Russian. If it's the same guy I've seen he's got a little mat and does some

kind of "jig" with a tamborine while singing I guess folk tunes. I'll give any farang 100B

no questions asked if they're down on their luck. It always amazes me how some men

will gladly throw a few thousand at some dancer but when one of their own countrymen

is in trouble, they want to castrate them. It can be a difficult place here and unfortunate

things happen to all manner of people. This recent debacle at the airport I'm sure has

left a few tourists in compromising positions. It truly reveals a person's character when

they have a moment to reflect on someone else's situation and offer some compassion.

But then, <deleted> do I know. Thai people call me crazy every day and then ask for money.

[foxxx]

there's down on your luck, and there's people who have put themselves in that position. willingly or unwillingly.

thai atm card, home bank visa card, they can get to both. you should also keep funds in a 3rd bank (like a high interest put in take out anytime one) that doesn't have an atm card - only web access.

if the bar girl / wife takes you for all you have, you have a reserve you can call on.

take care of yourself, plan shit. i feel nothing for these people who come here, drink themselves blind every day, take girls and fuc_k about.

it all costs money. if your spend exceeds your intake, then your going to be screwed in the end, so back off. the idiots don't, so i feel nothing. let them beg.

you're always in control of what's going on. you don't end up like that from bad luck, but from bad decisions and planning. a massively bad decision on their part was coming here in the first place. sex and drink got them over excited and they blew it all.

as for people who live here and have lost their jobs, or live back home and have lost jobs, they obviously can't plan for that or control that. (you still should have a sink fund to call on). but i do feel for those people. people who have truly been put in a position by someone else and their cash has just run out - as long as it didn't run out from partying it away and doing stupid shit.

[patklang]

I think he's Russian. If it's the same guy I've seen he's got a little mat and does some

kind of "jig" with a tamborine while singing I guess folk tunes. I'll give any farang 100B

no questions asked if they're down on their luck. It always amazes me how some men

will gladly throw a few thousand at some dancer but when one of their own countrymen

is in trouble, they want to castrate them. It can be a difficult place here and unfortunate

things happen to all manner of people. This recent debacle at the airport I'm sure has

left a few tourists in compromising positions. It truly reveals a person's character when

they have a moment to reflect on someone else's situation and offer some compassion.

But then, <deleted> do I know. Thai people call me crazy every day and then ask for money.

good point and i also find it disgusting how people can talk about others down on their luck.sure you morons can throw big money at go girls but cant give a guy 100 baht for a meal.you know who you are,hope it happens to you sometime.next topic will be how much some guys have to spend weekly here and how they cant get their nutall,pathetic realy.

[garro]

there's down on your luck, and there's people who have put themselves in that position. willingly or unwillingly.

thai atm card, home bank visa card, they can get to both. you should also keep funds in a 3rd bank (like a high interest put in take out anytime one) that doesn't have an atm card - only web access.

if the bar girl / wife takes you for all you have, you have a reserve you can call on.

take care of yourself, plan shit. i feel nothing for these people who come here, drink themselves blind every day, take girls and fuc_k about.

it all costs money. if your spend exceeds your intake, then your going to be screwed in the end, so back off. the idiots don't, so i feel nothing. let them beg.

you're always in control of what's going on. you don't end up like that from bad luck, but from bad decisions and planning. a massively bad decision on their part was coming here in the first place. sex and drink got them over excited and they blew it all.

as for people who live here and have lost their jobs, or live back home and have lost jobs, they obviously can't plan for that or control that. (you still should have a sink fund to call on). but i do feel for those people. people who have truly been put in a position by someone else and their cash has just run out - as long as it didn't run out from partying it away and doing stupid shit.

I have seen many friends die through addiction and I also witnessed many patients die through alcoholic liver disease through my previous profession. The idea that this is due to bad decisions or planning is just ignorance. We don't blame other people for their mental health problems so why should we blame addicts. Nobody plans to live in the gutter; it is just a place that some people end up. The truth is that almost everybody is a lot closer to this desperate state then they could ever admit to themselves. Many street people were once successful and many become successful when they escape the streets and addiction.

[Heng]

There are a few who "just end up where they are."

Those who are there because of their own choices are far greater in number IMO. You don't just "end up" in another country without adequate financial reserves. You had to have made the choice to take that risk.

[cali4995]

And of course this one guy stands out because he is a "white-skinned farang". You can't

go anywhere in this town without tripping over the full-time Thai/Cambodian beggars

who are all over the sidewalk or go soliciting donations to tourists sitting in bars. Yes,

some of them are drunks, some of them have mental problems and some of them are

just professional beggars. Perfectly healthy, just walk around with a cup jabbing it in

the face of tourists, trying to make them feel guilty because they are on a holiday.

[MeetJohnDoe]

I think the it was the guy Cali described...he did have an Eastern European/Russian appearance. It was the first fereng begger I have come across in Pattaya. Unfortunately, he many not be the last with the economic crash and currency falls experience by many foreigners visiting/residing in LOS.

[garro]

There are a few who "just end up where they are."

Those who are there because of their own choices are far greater in number IMO. You don't just "end up" in another country without adequate financial reserves. You had to have made the choice to take that risk.

Yes you do just end up in another country without funds. Like other mental problems addiction is often characterised by periods of apparent control followed by periods where all control is lost. Most drunks have little insight into their condition and have no warning as to when they are going to lose all control. Somewhere like Pattaya is the ideal place for many to completely lose the plot because it is does not have the usual constrainst which would be in place in their home countries; such as friends, employers, and family. Many people with other mental illness hit bottom while away from home also.

[foxxx]

mental problems are mental problems, fair enough

but additions aren't mental problems, and there's ways to fight and control an addiction. (not saying its easy by any means)

if you're a gambling addict, dont go to vegas, if your a alcoholic, dont go to pattaya / octoberfest.

you can change your surroundings to help fight your problem.

garro - reformed drunk - how do you survive here? is the drinking no longer an issue and you can go out to a bar and have a few, or do you steer 100% clear of drinks?

in a town like this unless you live outside of the main area, it's hard to go anywhere without being surrounded by bars. not the best place for weak people who can succumb to a drinking addiction (not saying your weak, people who currently are addicted to alcohol and can't turn away).

but thats all beside the point.

falang beggar on the street. I've had westerns hit me up for money before, I've given out a couple of K so they can get what they need to get out, but with the dollar what it is now days i'm working hard for my money and doing my best to get ahead and stay there, if they are stupid enough to come here, risk it by taking girls to their room and not keeping their shit secure or piss it all away in a bar, it ain't my problem. i'm not working hard to bail you out.

[garro]

Foxxx, addictions have been recognised as a form of mental illness for over a hundred years now. The medical establishment no longer views the victims of addictions as reprobates and addiction is no longer seen as been the result of lack of will-power. In most advanced countries we also no longer view mental illness as being due to possession from demons.

I was on the streets in my early twenties and managed to escape, and I am now in my late thirties. I made a success of my life, but never forgot where I have came from. I wouldn't want to change anything that happened in my life. I also have great compassion for others who managed to fall into the trap of addiction or homelessness.

I am not saying that anyone here needs to help anybody, but what I am saying is that these down-on-their-luck westerners should not be seen as a source of amusement. If you don't want to help that's fine; just walk-by and keep your judgments to yourself.

I have lived in Thailand for the last six years, and don't need to avoid bars. I just have no interest in them anymore.

Edited December 6, 2008 by garro

[tmd5855]

Garro,

You seem to be the only one showing any compassion or understanding for a human being down on their luck.

As a parent who has seen the slipperly slope that drugs (Alcohol & substance) can do to a human. When people "looking on" observe and comment, it does not get through. The person does not realise, nor are they aware, where they are heading or ending up.

A dose of charity is in order.

"There but for the grace of god go I"

[billdo2000]

Garro,

You seem to be the only one showing any compassion or understanding for a human being down on their luck.

As a parent who has seen the slipperly slope that drugs (Alcohol & substance) can do to a human. When people "looking on" observe and comment, it does not get through. The person does not realise, nor are they aware, where they are heading or ending up.

A dose of charity is in order.

"There but for the grace of god go I"

I couldn't agree more with all of Garro's comments. I am an educated, hard working, motivated, and ambitious professional who has a problem with alcohol. I live and work in the Middle East in a country with pretty severe penalties for consuming alcohol - so I don't even consider drinking. I do well at work and make good money. When in Thailand on vacation, I go absolutely nuts...two week drunk-fest. This last time I was on vacation in Thailand, I got so bad that I postponed a job interview for a position somewhere else in the same geographical location so that I could stay on my drunk-fest. I didn't want to go back to the "dry-country" any sooner than I absolutely had to (for work) and the interview was scheduled a few days before I had to return to work.

The potential employer, after my having given them my BS excuse, was no longer interested in me and I lost an opportunity to almost triple my income.

I never planned this scenario and who in their right mind would? It was something that happened over two weeks of drinking hard every day. By the end of the holiday when I had to go back early for the interview, I used whatever logic in my mind to distort the situation to where I could justify (in my alcohol soaked mind) postponing the interview. When I got back to work and had a week to sober up, I thought to myself: "What the hel_l have I done?" In fact, I'm thinking of it as I type.

Having mentioned all of this, you probably might not find anyone with more empathy and understanding than me. Personally, I have wised up. When I leave this country and return to the west, I will completely stop drinking. Otherwise I could very easily end up "on the streets" and a begger...and not by my own choice.

[garro]

billdo2000, your post has brought up so many memories for me. I worked as a nurse in Saudi and moved there because I wanted to escape alcohol. Unlike you though my drinking actually deteriorated while there because of the easy availability of the illegal stuff on my compound. I was lucky to leave that country alive. Others were not so lucky. One of the paramedics had a similar idea as mine and had also moved to Saudi to escape his addiction. Like me he drank again, but unlike me he never left Saudi. He eventually died a horrible death by drowning on his own blood due to complications from his liver disease; bleeding oesphageal varicies. Anyone who thinks that addiction is self-inflicted is an idiot. I wouldn't wish the life of a drunk on a dog.

billdo2000, I do hope that you manage to leave alcohol behind, It is obviously doing you no favours. My life today is so wonderful. Amazing things can happen when you walk away from an addiction. I hope you too find this. You deserve it; everyone does.

Edited December 6, 2008 by garro

[billdo2000]

billdo2000, your post has brought up so many memories for me. I worked as a nurse in Saudi and moved there because I wanted to escape alcohol. Unlike you though my drinking actually deteriorated while there because of the easy availability of the illegal stuff on my compound. I was lucky to leave that country alive. Others were not so lucky. One of the paramedics had a similar idea as mine and had also moved to Saudi to escape his addiction. Like me he drank again, but unlike me he never left Saudi. He eventually died a horrible death by drowning on his own blood due to complications from his liver disease; bleeding oesphageal varicies. Anyone who thinks that addiction is self-inflicted is an idiot. I wouldn't wish the life of a drunk on a dog.

billdo2000, I do hope that you manage to leave alcohol behind, It is obviously doing you no favours. My life today is so wonderful. Amazing things can happen when you walk away from an addiction. I hope you too find this. You deserve it; everyone does.

My situation is a little different. I came here for the benefits it would have towards my career and the money, not really to escape anything. I never had anything major happen in my life as a direct consequence of alcohol abuse (I've been lucky) and never considered drinking a problem but I now realize it was (is). I've got many, many stories of passing out in college, etc., etc. but nothing like this last time.

I really went from recreational drinker to problem drinker after an accident. I broke my pelvis and severed some nerves to my foot causing some pretty nasty nerve pain 24 hours a day for over one year. If I drank, it went away...given your profession, you know where that went.

This occurrence (or job loss) was a slap in the face and made me realize that my life took a serious hit as a direct consequence of alcohol. Like I said though, I'm lucky in that I still do have my original job and still do well. It is pretty nice being here in spite of my work/living arrangements (I work in the bad areas of the Middle East.) Before coming here, I got drunk once a week for almost 15 years. Like I mentioned earlier, after the accident it went from once a week to drinking every single day. Remaining alcohol free for four months is quite nice. I feel sharp-minded and do very well...

I met a guy here who claimed that this job saved his life. He went from successful CPA to homeless drunk living in his truck after his drinking finally caught up to him. He found the happiness of sobriety here and says he absolutely will not drink again. He says it's a shame his ex-wife does not share the same idea.

If we are caught drinking here on the compound we lose our jobs; no questions asked. I always follow the rules so drinking is not an option. I know for a fact that when I move to Thailand (hopefully soon) I will have to completely stop drinking.

Sorry to hear about your co-worker. I'll bet that was difficult given your history.

[Heng]

There are a few who "just end up where they are."

Those who are there because of their own choices are far greater in number IMO. You don't just "end up" in another country without adequate financial reserves. You had to have made the choice to take that risk.

Yes you do just end up in another country without funds. Like other mental problems addiction is often characterised by periods of apparent control followed by periods where all control is lost. Most drunks have little insight into their condition and have no warning as to when they are going to lose all control. Somewhere like Pattaya is the ideal place for many to completely lose the plot because it is does not have the usual constrainst which would be in place in their home countries; such as friends, employers, and family. Many people with other mental illness hit bottom while away from home also.

Again, there are probably some that do (I'm not saying there isn't mental illness and addictions in the world)... but far more that choose their own fates.

[Baannok]

How did "farang" turn into "fereng"? It sounds nothing like it.

[tropo]

How did "farang" turn into "fereng"? It sounds nothing like it.

Who really cares about the spelling. All I hear is "Falang" so one could just as easily wonder why it's spelt with an "r".

[garro]

How did "farang" turn into "fereng"? It sounds nothing like it.

Who really cares about the spelling. All I hear is "Falang" so one could just as easily wonder why it's spelt with an "r".

How 'farang' is pronounced will have a lot to do with the speaker's social class and accent. If westerners put as much effort into other Thai words as they do on this one then they would all be fluent Thai speakers. Farang is how it is normally written as it saves confusion, but of course people like to be different. I am not Thai so I don't tend to use the word. Anyway, the farang, falung, falang, feleng, felenge debate is well covered elsewhere on the forum and other than the tread's title it has little to do with the subject at hand.

Edited December 6, 2008 by garro

[Jimjim]

[i guess some of them are eccentric low-intellect, low-lifers in their home towns, and absconding to Pattaya, after having burnt bridges behind, doesn't really improve things.

Or you'd just like to think that to make yourself feel better.

[mc2]

How did "farang" turn into "fereng"? It sounds nothing like it.

Who really cares about the spelling. All I hear is "Falang" so one could just as easily wonder why it's spelt with an "r".

yes, the spoken seems to be "falang" but the written standard is "farang".

fereng is just wrong. whats next ? forong ? fulung ?

[garro]

[i guess some of them are eccentric low-intellect, low-lifers in their home towns, and absconding to Pattaya, after having burnt bridges behind, doesn't really improve things.

Or you'd just like to think that to make yourself feel better.

I think that you have hit the nail on the head jimjim. Most people could not cope with the thought that they could end up in the gutter so they blame the victim. The idea that anybody could develop mental illness or addiction at anytime is too much for them. The conviction that down-on-their-luck people are of low-intellect or are low-lifers is far easier to cope with.